The FBI released the first document on the 9/11 attacks, declassified as part of the decree of US President Joe Biden.

"This material is published in accordance with the decree signed on September 3, 2021 on the analysis of certain documents related to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks for their subsequent declassification," the ministry's explanatory note says.

It is worth noting that many fragments were removed from the original text of the 16-page document dated 2016 prior to publication.

The materials declassified by the FBI refer to a man who was interviewed by American investigators on November 12 and 13, 2015 “in connection with his pending request for US citizenship and in order to clarify the circumstances of his contact with persons who provided significant logistical support to those who participated in the 9/11 attacks. the hijackers Nawaf al-Khazmi (Khazmi) and Khalid al-Midhar (Midhar) ”.

The source, whose name was also kept under wraps, is said to have “willingly provided many specific details” about his job at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Los Angeles.

In addition, he said that he perfectly remembers the smallest details of the meeting with the citizen of the kingdom Omar al-Bayumi, who helped the two hijackers to rent an apartment, and Bayumi's friend Bin Don.

According to the FBI, the source has repeatedly stated that he did not discuss the 9/11 events either on the grounds of the King Fahd Mosque in California, or at the consulate.

At the same time, he could not explain why the allegations that none of those whom he knows discussed the events of September 11 on the territory of the mosque after the terrorist attacks "directly contradict what the sources said."

The declassified materials reported that American investigators tried to establish whether the meeting, in which Bayumi, Bin Don, Midhar and Hazmi participated, was planned in advance, or if it happened, as Bayumi said, "by accident."

"Logistic support for Hazmi and Midhar from Bayumi related to translation, travel assistance, accommodation and financing," the document says.

In addition, it is noted that Bayumi often spoke about "jihad".

  • FBI insignia

  • © AP Photo / Jose Luis Magana

The report also mentions Fahad al-Tumayri, who was an employee of the Saudi Arabian Embassy in the United States.

Tumairi's involvement in the Los Angeles network linked to "elements related to al-Qaeda" * is reported to be a relevant factor in analyzing his subsequent facilitation of a meeting between the 9/11 hijackers and Bayumi ".

Unclassified materials

We will remind, on September 3, US President Joe Biden issued a decree that ordered the Justice Department and other departments "to monitor the analysis of documents related to the FBI investigations into the September 11 attacks, for their subsequent declassification."

“This decree obliges the attorney general to release the declassified documents within the next six months,” Biden said in a statement.

The text of the decree noted that information should not be kept secret "when the importance of its disclosure from the point of view of public interests outweighs any damage to national security that may reasonably be expected later."

However, the White House simultaneously admitted that the data could remain classified if it still needs to be protected "in the interests of national security" and there is reason to believe that the US national security will suffer as a result of their disclosure.

Earlier, in August, about 1.8 thousand Americans, including relatives of the victims of the 9/11 attacks, signed an appeal to Biden, in which they urged him not to attend commemorative events dedicated to the anniversary of the tragedy until he removed the classification from a number of documents revealing the circumstances of the incident.

The authors of the letter are convinced that these materials contain evidence of the involvement of the official Riyadh in the tragedy.

Meanwhile, the Saudi Arabian Embassy in the United States recently announced that Riyadh welcomes the publication of classified documents related to the September 11 terrorist attacks.

The diplomatic department stressed that any allegations of Saudi Arabia's involvement in the terrorist attacks are false.

We will remind, on September 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked four passenger planes, sending them to civil and military facilities in the United States.

Moreover, 15 out of 19 terrorists were citizens of Saudi Arabia.

The most significant in terms of death toll was the attack on the World Trade Center in New York.

In total, about 3 thousand people became victims of the attacks.

Washington blamed the tragedy on the al-Qaeda group and its leader Osama bin Laden, who was eliminated in 2011.

  • September 11, 2001 terrorist attack

  • © AP Photo / Marty Lederhandler

It was after the September 11 attacks that the American authorities brought their troops into Afghanistan, citing the need to carry out a mission to combat terrorism, which as a result stretched out for almost 20 years.

In August 2021, the hasty withdrawal of the American military from Afghanistan contributed to the destabilization of the situation in the country.

The republic is now controlled by the Taliban **.

"Answer to criticism"

According to experts, Washington nevertheless decided to release the previously classified FBI document, not least because of public pressure.

“This is a response to criticism from US citizens.

Biden first issued a decree under pressure from the public, and now the bureau has released the first document shedding light on some details of the circumstances of the September 11 attacks.

The relatives of the victims have been asking for this for a long time.

Many Americans also complained that 20 years had passed since the terrorist attack, and a significant part of the documents about it still remained classified.

Because of this, both the previous administration of the White House and the current one have more than once found themselves under a flurry of criticism, "said Yuri Rogulyov, director of the Franklin Roosevelt Foundation for the Study of the United States at Moscow State University, in an interview with RT.

As, in turn, reminded the Americanist and corresponding member of the Academy of Military Sciences Sergei Sudakov, the relatives of the victims believe that Saudi Arabia allegedly played a role in organizing the attacks on the United States on September 11.

“However, the document published by the FBI does not say anything about it.

We are talking, of course, about the citizens of this country, but no parallels are drawn with its authorities.

But the mention of all these persons is already, in Washington's opinion, a kind of compromise that the American special services are making in order to try to reconcile society with the White House administration in this matter.

However, the intelligence community is doing it rather awkwardly: the Americans were waiting for other documents, "Sudakov said in a commentary on RT.

In addition, from Rogulev's point of view, by publishing previously classified data, Biden also wants to shift the focus of public attention from the failed US operation in Afghanistan, which actually ended with the "flight" of the Americans.

"He did this in order, among other things, to distract the citizens of the United States from criticizing the measures taken by the head of the White House in connection with the situation around Afghanistan, and the withdrawal of troops from there," the analyst said.

In addition, in his opinion, the release of documents related to the September 11 tragedy is also a way to relieve some tension in American society due to internal problems.

“American dissatisfaction with the situation inside the country is only growing, and Washington needs to do something about it.

The new outbreak of COVID-19, economic and social problems, as well as other difficulties that have accumulated, put the American authorities in front of the need to somehow “let off steam,” the expert noted.

  • FBI staff

  • © AP Photo / Nam Y. Huh

At the same time, analysts agree that the published document, which is only a small fraction of the amount of information classified by the FBI, does not reveal practically any details of the September 11 attacks.

Moreover, political analysts believe that the Americans, as well as the world community, in the foreseeable future are unlikely to wait for all the circumstances of this tragedy to come out.

"The special services of the United States, including the FBI, have a lot of opportunities not to disclose all information for a very long time," Rogulyov explained.

Sudakov adheres to a similar position.

According to him, there are “too many blank spots” in the circumstances surrounding the September 11 attacks, which are not explained by the published FBI document within the framework of the Biden decree.

“There are many inconsistencies in the case of the tragedy.

And the citizens of the United States, and the world community, would like to get a complete picture of what actually happened on September 11 in 2001.

But Washington issues only those documents that are profitable or not difficult for it to make public for one reason or another.

In the coming decades, we are unlikely to witness the disclosure of all the circumstances of the case, ”concluded the expert.

* "Al-Qaeda" - the organization was recognized as terrorist by the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of 02/14/2003.

** "Taliban" - the organization was recognized as terrorist by the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 02.14.2003